Carnival Cruise Line plans to sail again Aug. 1

Carnival Cruise Line plans to sail some of its ships in North America this summer starting on Aug. 1. 

The cruise line announced Monday its plan to phase-in service after a pause amid the coronavirus pandemic. 

Carnival Cruise Line will begin with starting service for eight ships in August from ports in Miami, Port Canaveral and Galveston. 

All other North American and Australian services will continue to be suspended through the end of August. Cruises set for June 27 to July 31 will be canceled. 

“We are committed to supporting all public health efforts to manage the COVID-19 situation,” the company said in a statement. “We are taking a measured approach, focusing our return to service on a select number of homeports where we have more significant operations that are easily accessible by car for the majority of our guests.”

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) extended its “no sail” order for all cruise ships in April. The order is in place until the CDC modifies the order, the public health emergency declaration by the secretary of Health and Human Services expires, or 100 days from the date the order extended. 

The CDC recommends avoiding all nonessential travel, including recommending travelers defer all cruise travel worldwide. The CDC said cruise passengers are at an “increased risk” of the person-to-person spread of infectious disease, including COVID-19.